Swimming in the Pensieve

Come the ides-less-four in the month of Caesar, microsoft will (according to their stated plans) resolutely discontinue public support for windoze 98, 98se and win me. Security updates, patches, repairs for bad patches, and anything else that might have come down the windoze update pike will also be a thing of the past–for the little good it ever did anybody.

The objection has been raised that it’s pretty dirty of microsoft not to support their own OSses for what amounts to a reasonable time.

The instant response to that objection is that microsoft can’t support the win-98 branch of the software tree forever…and look at F/L-OSS! They rev even faster than microsoft does, so what are you complaining about?

Indeed.

OK. F/L-OSS does rev faster than msft does, but we’re also speaking of a software community that fosters a faster rate of OS and application evolution. It really is something like comparing the rate of human aging to that of Loren Greene’s dog years. The primary difference being that the dog is smarter, more healthy, and will live longer, than the metaphorical human.

F/L-OSS is a completely different animal after even two years of development; yet, I still have a server that has been loaded-up and running for…at the time of writing…more than 6 years. So, one can stick with something that is, by F/L-OSS standards, ancient; and manually patch and maintain it–with excellent results and ROI.

Well, ROI really doesn’t come into play with that particular machine, since the server OS cost me nothing at all. The only real investment that went into that machine was the time required to install and maintain the OS; which has been negligable; and it shows no signs of my having to replace it.

The point is that I have gotten pretty-much what I expect, in terms of serviceable lifetime, from the F/L-OSS Operating System: More than 6 years, and still running well.

The other side of the OS lifetime coin is that, when I (potentially) lay-out money for an OS, I expect something on the order of ten years of continuous and competent support for it; and that’s not an unreasonable expectation.

Had I purchased 98, 98se or win-me, I’d be out of luck; since support is being cut from 2 to 4 years short of that ten-year mark.

For me, that’s the central point of the issue…not getting the support one pays for.

The retail price-point of ms OSses is 400 bucks, and it looks like that will only increase in the future. OEM versions of ms OSses are only discounted from that point by 100 to 200 dollars; with the true cost rolled-into the price of the machine that it comes loaded on. If you’re lucky, you might even be able to buy CDs or DVDs containing the install image, but the terms of the OEM license agreement prohibit your installing the image to any other machine.

Ignoring, for the moment, all of the freedoms you have given up by accepting the msft EULA; you have also been short-changed on OS support–both in terms of quality and longevity. That point should stick solidly in your mind.

Another point that should stick solidly with you is the one that makes all of the hardware manufacturers such loyal lovers of the windoze camp: None of the machines, that currently sport some sup-species of win-98, will be powerful enough to run win-vista (if it is ever released). Moreover, many of the current win-xp machines aren’t up-to-snuff either.

This will leave perfectly functional computers potentially OS-orphaned, if you only consider your msft options.

These are perfect candidates for discussion with folks like me.

windoze customers are being artificially prodded into the upgrade cattle chute. There is no reason that the OS cannot be updated and patched for the next four years, but that simply isn’t going to be the case; and you will now be treated to the decision of keeping your machine and running an unsupported OS, or upgrading both the hardware and OS (because you have to), to your financial detriment; taking another step closer to yearly subscription-based OS and application software.

Why can’t you just keep what you have now?

Have you tried to buy windoze-based software lately?

Even at this stage of the game, software is increasingly xp-based-only, not supporting the the earlier win-98-branch; so the software providers are helping shape the landscape for you. Adobe (one of microsoft’s best-buddies) is merely one example of this. You can bet that that this cycle will only be shortened in the future, with xp being dumped a year or two quicker.

Yet your hardware investment is still operational, and there’s no real reason you should have to dump it!

Yeah, but you’re supposed to cooperate with the game-plan nonetheless; because you have no choice.

Well, your presumed lack of choice is only an illusion furthered by the criminal monopoly leading the American Software Cartel.

That ‘Linux-thing’ all of those wild-eyed fanatics keep going-on about, is perfect for your up-coming situation; because Linux will give you as good as, or better, performance on your current hardware; without the kinds of hassles you’ve been led to believe are the norm. (Of course, the fact that you will have to pay little-to-nothing to make the transition never hurts.)

Allow me to acquaint you with the advantages of making the change-over to Linux right now.

• Keep your current hardware.
  There is no need to replace the satisfactory-working computer that you have now, because Linux gives comparable (or better) speed of operation on the same hardware. In general, upgrading to increase the speed of your computers operation–to keep up with microsofts inefficiencies–is a microsoft-thing. Linux doesn’t suffer from these drawbacks.
• Do you like computer freezes, crashes and re-booting to hope that scandisk will fix things?
  If so, you’re going to be very disappointed with Linux and F/L-OSS programs. You might have the occasional undisciplined (usually alpha) program, but you discover that application crashes never take down the Operating System. It is possible for an Operating System to run for years without crashing–ever. No crashes. No lost data. I don’t know about you, but I like that.
• Keep your money in your pocket.
  You can make the switch for, in most cases, zero-cost. It really depends on how much hand-holding you’d like from a support department. You can ‘go-it-on-your-own, have a friend or acquaintance help you, or opt for a full-retail distribution (for a lot less than your microsoft alternatives) with point-and-click convenience.
• Keep your documents.
  OpenOffice.org and StarOffice (among others) have better compatibility with proprietary microsoft document formats than microsoft office does. Using only word-2003, open and modify a word-6.0 or word-95 document. Save it and send it back to the word-6.0/word-95 user for their approval and annotation–to be returned to you for final edits. You can’t. I don’t use anything but StarOffice and OpenOffice.org, and I can do that easily. (It happens more often than you think.) PowerPoint? Other ms-office docs? No problem for me, so what’s all the fuss about in the windoze world? It’s called “Forced Upgrades”, a trick that microsoft got pretty good at when it was pretty obvious that they couldn’t hold their own against the competition–on the technical merits of their software offerings alone. It is one of the chief reasons for microsoft’s survival.
• ODF now.
  You don’t need to wait for the trickle-down of the word ODF plugin to finally make its way to you. Both StarOffice 8 and OO.o 2 open and save to ODF–right now. You also don’t have to discover–to your consternation–that microsoft, if they ever provide ODF support, will probably put a proprietary-spin on their saved document format, or sabotage ODF altogether. (They have to at least make the attempt at ODF-FUD.)
• Say good-bye to buying software in the stores.
  Get what you need, for little-to-no extra cost, without ever leaving your keyboard. From rolling-your-own, to click-and-run, you can shop for your software and have it in–literally–minutes of simply wanting it. It’s ‘instant gratification’ on steroids!
• Thumb your nose at viruses, worms, spyware and trojans.
  You paid for your computer and, in theory, you own it. Nice theory. In the windoze world, you don’t actually own your computer, somebody else does (microsoft, Adobe, the government, some kid in Romania or China–take your pick). You shouldn’t have to rent your computer from anti-virus service and OS providers–not after what you’ve already paid for it!
• Jump off the forced-upgrade merry-go-round.
  You’ve been spinning your wheels, just trying to keep up with the accelerating pace of featureless software upgrades which break compatibility with what you had before. It really is time that you step out of the spend a buck, only to discover that it was money-wasted, world.
• Trade your ‘Non-Warranty’ in for something else.
  If you have read the EULAs and warranty statements that you’ve agreed to, you have discovered something surprising: YOU HAVE NO WARRANTY AND NO RIGHTS. The F/L-OSS world offers you something different from having that ridiculous scenario: You still have no warranty, but you get to keep your rights. Rights are good. In the United States of America, we are used to having our rights preserved, not stolen from us. Get yours back.
• Keep your private information private.
  You know about those programs that won’t allow you to not register with the software publisher. If you have no warranty–and you don’t–there is no reason to register the program…unless it’s just another data mining technique–which it is. Don’t be forced to register programs. The F/L-OSS world doesn’t really give a hoot about data mining you for some latest ad campaign; because ad campaigns, per se, are anathema to the F/L-OSS world; so you won’t find a plethora of forced registration techniques being used on you. You also won’t discover that your computer is covertly leaking your personal information to those interested in selling you their latest version of the ubiquitous ‘widget’.
• It’s not any harder to learn to use.
  Were you able to learn to use windoze, microsoft works (I apologize for using the oxymoron), word, or any other ms-based program? Unless you possess the brand of stupidity that is patentable, the answer is, “Yes”. Then, you won’t have many problems learning how to use the myriad F/L-OSS programs available to you, at little or no cost. It’s simply a matter of modifying a few bad habits.
  Unless you possess an ego of the proportions of the Lower East-Side of Manhattan, you do have the time to learn the few-odd new things that you’ll need to do some everyday tasks. Or, is that too much to expect from somebody like you?
• You are not a criminal in the F/L-OSS world.
  You’ve already been tried and convicted in the windoze world. Congratulations!
  In my world you benefit from the ideas of others–often for free–because good ideas–like good news–are best spread to as many people as possible.
  In the windoze world, an idea (so-called ‘intellectual property’) is only as good as its price tag–that is, how badly the customer is charged for the cyclic indignity of being gang-raped by the software cartel.
• You are assumed to be intelligent in the F/L-OSS world.
  In the windoze world, you’re nothing more than cash-cattle, being moved from place to place at the behest of people most interested in milking you for your money, as well as the occasional unceremonious slaughter. Your choices (and freedoms) are few and far between, because you’re too stupid to be allowed such liberties.
  In my world, you are given the freedom to pick and choose, for yourself, what you believe to be best, for yourself. You pay for what you consider to be worth using–for yourself.
  With freedom comes responsibility. Maybe you’re ready for that. Maybe not.
  Decide for yourself.

If you’re running win-98, 98se or win-me, your hardware is (probably without the addition of extra memory) up-to-snuff for the installation of a wide-range of Linux distributions.

ONE WARNING:
If you have been duped-into buying crappy, windoze-only, hardware, you may have to replace it with good quality hardware–the vast majority of which is already supported by Linux. If you stop to consider the situation honestly, you have to admit that replacing only a printer (and possibly a ten-dollar modem) is vastly cheaper than replacing an entire computer system (and paying the microsoft tax), just because support for your current OS version has been halted. (In other-words, just because you were ordered to do so.)

Ethical studies have shown, time and time again, that Linux is more stable and secure; and runs better on less expensive hardware than windoze absolutely must have. All that money wasted on windoze for inferior performance, less security and more crashes.

I simply can’t help myself. I have to ask you: Are you crazy, or worse?